


Prompt: I’ll Protect You

by respoftw



Series: Comfortween 2020 [7]
Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Episode Related, Episode: s02e02 The Intruder, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:34:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26841490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/respoftw/pseuds/respoftw
Summary: John arrives back in the mountain after speaking to Ford’s cousin.
Relationships: Rodney McKay/John Sheppard
Series: Comfortween 2020 [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1947178
Comments: 10
Kudos: 64
Collections: Comfortween 2020





	Prompt: I’ll Protect You

**Author's Note:**

> I saw a list of prompts for “Comfortween” [on dreamwidth](https://hurtcomfortex.dreamwidth.org/22946.html)
> 
> 7\. I’ll protect you!  
> Trying to protect someone and failing, trying to protect someone and getting hurt in the process.

“I would have come with you if you had told me where you were going.”

John swallowed his beer and let the bottle rest on the table.He looked up at Rodney who was standing in the door to John’s VIP room with a concerned look on his face.

He shook his head.

“Wasn’t your responsibility, McKay.It was mine.”

Rodney stepped into the room and sat on the couch next to John.

“You helped me write all those letters, how is this different?”

“Because it is.”

Because Rodney didn’t sign up for a war and wasn’t trained on how to handle the loss of the people he was supposed to protect.

John stood up and stomped over to his mini fridge.He took another two beers out and handed one to Rodney.

“If you’re staying, you’re drinking,” he said.

Rodney popped off the top and took a drink.“That bad?”

John sighed.Maybe if he gave Rodney something, he’d let it drop.

“His cousin wouldn’t even let me talk to their grandparents.Didn’t want me to give them hope.” He took another drink.“She blames me.”

“She’s an idiot.”

John scoffed and Rodney grew louder.

“No, she is.She has no idea what happened, she doesn’t know what we’ve been through, what Ford had been through, how much Ford looked up to you - -“

“Well, I sorted that, that’s for damn sure,” John laughed bitterly.

“What?”

He leaned back.“It’s pretty hard to idolise your CO when they fucked up badly enough that you were Wraith food.” John raised the bottle to his mouth, ready to drain it.

Rodney intercepted the bottle, pulling it from John’s hand before it reached his mouth.

“That isn’t what happened.”Rodney’s mouth was slanted down even more than usual and John was just buzzed enough that he wanted to reach out and trace the crooked line of Rodney’s lips but not buzzed enough to actually do it.

Rodney continued.“Forgetting the fact that it was Colonel Everett whose command Ford was acting under when - - you would do anything for anyone under your command. They all know it and we all- they all - love you for it.I know that you won’t stop looking for Ford until you find him.He knows it too.His cousin doesn’t know shit. She doesn’t know you. She doesn’t deserve to.”

“She just got told that her little cousin was MIA, I think we can cut her a little slack.”

“No.Not when you’re sitting here drinking like you did something wrong, like you were to blame.It wasn’t your fault, John.I should know.I am a genius after all.”

That startled a laugh out of John.He grabbed his beer back out of Rodney’s hand.

“Well, can’t argue with that.”

Rodney smiled softly.He was too smart to think that John had forgiven himself but he was smart enough to know that John was telling him to drop it.And, truth be told, John did feel a little better.McKay always seemed to know how to do that.

John was smart enough to know why.


End file.
